Local students give a day of service

BOSTON - Eighth-grade students from across MetroWest and the Milford area traveled to the city Saturday to take part in Project 351, Gov. Deval Patrick's initiative to instill a sense of service among the state's youth.

The students, from the 351 cities and towns throughout Massachusetts, congregated in Faneuil Hall Saturday morning before dispersing to seven nearby sites to take part in service projects.

In a talk to the students, Patrick said the program grew out of a desire to involve young people in the state. He spoke about having an inaugural ceremony for youths when he first took office.

"The second (inaugural), it became about how to take it to the next level," he said.

Patrick said he ultimately hoped to instill a "community" feeling throughout the state.

"I think having a sense of community is vital to solving every issue facing us, our commonwealth and our country," he said. "It's the notion that we have a common cause, a stake not only in our own struggles, but those of our neighbors as well."

Ashland ambassador Julia Sicard asked Patrick if, as a youth, he thought he could be governor. Patrick said he had not, but was driven to politics by a desire to stop short-sighted policies.

"I think the way we make government better is to make hard decisions now, which will pay off over time," he said.

Rebekah Redwine, of Franklin, was among the students who led the assembly in the Pledge of Allegiance.

Angela Santana, Framingham's eighth-grade ambassador, said she was excited to participate in the event.

"It's a pleasure to be here. I was so happy to get chosen," she said. "Everyone's really friendly and nice."

Santana said she felt she could bring that spirit of helping people back to the community.

"I'm learning so much," she said. "I think I could definitely do that."

Santana was helping at the Samuel Mason Elementary School in Roxbury. Ellen Eickenhorst of City Year said the ambassadors there were assembling "resource kits," filled with supplies for the school's students, and painting the cafeteria.

"We'll be giving one (resource kit) to each student, so we'll be making around 250 packets in total," she said. City Year, a Boston-based, education-focused nonprofit organization, helped coordinate the volunteer efforts.

Dan Pacella, Milford's representative, was assisting with a winter carnival at the Orchard Garden Boys & Girls Club. His task, he said, was to help attendees assemble a mosaic of Martin Luther King Jr.

"It's been awesome," he said. "I've had a great time representing Milford."

Pacella said everyone he had met thus far had been helpful, and that this event encouraged him to take up projects in his hometown.

Page 2 of 2 - Claire Cylkowski, a service leader with City Year, helped organize the winter carnival. She said the more senior volunteers aimed to get the students involved.

"We want to 'on-board' the ambassadors with the activities, and then have them run it," she said. "We really want to give the eighth-graders a sense of ownership."

Other area students who participated in the day include Andrew Loberti of Bellingham, Michaela Campbell of Holliston, Cassidy Adams of Hopedale, Benjamin Nigrosh of Hopkinton, Elizabeth Billings of Hudson, Joseph Gough of Marlborough, Emily Cuff of Medway, Josh Shrestha of Mendon, Katherine Govoni of Millis, Louisa Calderaro of Natick, Allison Berardi of Northborough, Cecilia Michalowski of Sherborn, Meaghan Campbell of Shrewsbury, Dylan Logan of Southborough, Haley Neff of Stow, Madelyn Paquette of Sudbury, Leah Fitzgerald of Upton, Jordan Washington of Uxbridge, Nicholas Estrada of Wayland, Elizabeth Hopkinson of Westborough and Melissa Barbosa of Weston.

Mike Gleason can be reached at 508-634-7546 ormailto:mgleason@wickedlocal.com. For news throughout the day, follow him on Twitter @MGleason_MDN.